Clustered Holly vs Common Sun Beetle

Ilex aggregata compared with Amara aenea

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Clustered Holly	Common Sun Beetle
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Aquifoliales (Aquifoliales)	Coleoptera (Beetles)
Family	Aquifoliaceae	Carabidae
Genus	Ilex	Amara
Species	Ilex aggregata	Amara aenea

Conservation Status

Clustered Holly

LC — Least Concern

Common Sun Beetle

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Clustered Holly	Common Sun Beetle
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Clustered Holly

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Common Sun Beetle

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Found across Europe (7 countries) and North America (Canada, United States).

Clustered Holly

Ilex aggregata is a holly in the family Aquifoliaceae. The genus Ilex is the largest genus in its family, comprising approximately 600 species distributed across tropical and subtropical regions of all continents except Antarctica and Australia, with diversity centers in South America and Asia. I. aggregata appears to be a South American or neotropical species, consistent with the high diversity of the genus in that region. Hollies are evergreen or deciduous shrubs and trees with typically leathery, often spiny leaves. They are dioecious, with male and female flowers borne on separate plants, and produce characteristic fleshy drupes (berries) that are often red, orange, or black when ripe, providing food for birds and other frugivores that disperse the seeds. Many Ilex species are adapted to forest understory, forest margins, and montane habitats. Holly berries and leaves are generally toxic to mammals, though consumed by certain birds. I. aggregata is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN. Detailed habitat and distribution data for this species are limited in publicly available records.

Common Sun Beetle

<em>Amara aenea</em>, the common sun beetle, is a carabid ground beetle in the family Carabidae, order Coleoptera. It is broadly distributed across Europe and has been introduced to North America, typically inhabiting open, sunny habitats such as arable fields, grasslands, sandy heathlands, and disturbed ground with sparse vegetation. Adults are omnivorous, feeding on seeds, small invertebrates, and plant material, and are considered important predators of weed seeds in agricultural systems. <em>Amara aenea</em> is surface-active during warm, dry conditions, typically exhibiting peak activity in late spring and summer. Like many carabid beetles, it is nocturnal and shelters under stones and debris during the day. Larvae develop in the soil, where they also feed on organic matter and small invertebrates. Biological traits including precise adult lifespan, body length measurements, and detailed prey preferences remain poorly documented at the species level. The species is assessed as Least Concern by the IUCN, reflecting its wide distribution, high adaptability to disturbed environments, and no significant known threats to global population status.